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Nintendo Embraces The Darkside

Nintendo is going to the darkside, getting into the world of microtransactions with the game Rusty Real Deal Baseball for the 3DS. You can find information on it in the article I wrote up on it for Gamers Sphere here.

Why in the world would Nintendo go for microtransactions, especially for their 3DS console? The 3DS is doing great for them. It’s the Wii-U that’s dragging the company down. I mean, games on the 3DS have consistently sold quite well. Sales rose 47% in 2012 and 48% in 2013. It sold more than 126 million games since it was released!!!! When compared to the Wii-U, the 3DS is doing unbelievably great. The Wii-U sold approximately 20 million games during its life cycle. The PlayStation 4, within three months, sold ten million games. That’s half of what the Wii-U sold since its release. The Wii-U is the one that needs a shot in the arm.

There’s every reason to believe that gamers have no problem spending $40 – $50 for a brand new 3DS game. The system has a sterling reputation and is currently the most successful console of its generation.Why in the world would Nintendo not take the risk with the less-successful system? That’s the one not selling well!

Nintendo does something Rusty Real Deal Baseball different with microtransactions than anyone else. Most microtransactions are about unlocking something in order to continue playing the game. Rusty Real Deal Baseball makes the microtransaction a game in of itself. The gamer is spending money to play a game that’s partially about spending money…

Why in the world does it read like ‘Rusty’ is trying to get the gamer to join him in his windowless van. That’s just creepy. “Rusty wouldn’t lie to you.” THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT LIARS SAY!

Microtransactions

Microtransactions work. There’s no way to get around that. I personally HATE them with a fiery passion and firmly believe it will cause the end of console games. But they work. Rather than having the gamer spend $40 up front for a game, the company can charge a dollar here and a dollar there with a free-to-play model. For whatever reason, the company will earn far more money over the long-term.

Microtransactions are, rightfully, criticized by gamers. They are a cheap way for companies to make money off of their own base. Get the gamer really interested in the game, lead them along, and then put some sort of limitation on it that can only be gotten around by the gamer spending money. Though, I can see why some gamers would probably like them. It’s not necessary for the gamer to spend the money in the first place. It’s possible to play the free-to-play games completely for free. I’m not convinced, as the companies really do know what they are doing. They knowingly design the games to encourage the gamer to spend the money. It’s manipulative, in my opinion.

It’ll be interesting to see what’ll happen from this. Maybe this strategy will be very successful and turn Nintendo’s problems around. Maybe it will hurt Nintendo’s reputation. Either way, the next few months will tell.

5 comments on “Nintendo Embraces The Darkside”

Microtransactions are one of my biggest gripes with the video game industry. It’s depressing how we can throw billions of dollars at companies, yet they still make use of microtransactions to get millions more out of us. I guess it’s just business though, and business seems pretty good. Good article, though. Thanks for sharing!

I think they work so well because of how the convenience of microtransactions appeal to our impulses to get things. Why would we wait 2 days to build something when we can pay two dollars and finish it now? I think that’s where microtransactions draw me and so many other people in, and that’s why microtransactions are going to be a very hard trend to reverse in my opinion. As much as we hate them, it’s hard not to give into the appeal of them!

It was very nice to have someone to vent to quickly. I hope to hear more from you in the future!